Is That You?
by Sapphyre Lily
Summary: Companion piece to Your Hand in Mine. Akashi ran into a cerulean-haired boy one day. Could it be that his search for Kuroko was over?


**Author's note: So many other stories I should be updating, but this one needed to be written when I first found out about Assassination Classroom. I never thought it would take me this long to post it up though.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or Ansatsu Kyoushitsu.**

* * *

Akashi sat down on a bench, one of the many that fringed the empty playground. The playground was one of the last few in the entire city, and fortunately, it was situated next to the kindergarten that his child attended.

He had just come from a 'bring your parent to school' activity, and had opted to wait outside until his son had finished the school day. It was less stressful for everyone that way.

After all, it was not every day that the wealthiest business tycoon in the country paid a visit to a humble kindergarten.

He could see the stress and worry lines on the teachers' faces, and the children stood solemnly in their rows, as if one wrong move could land them in jail.

Well, they were not wrong. That didn't mean that he liked to abuse his power, though.

Sure, he enjoyed putting people in their places, but that was for insolent adults. Children he could forgive, provided they held a semblance of respect for him and did not offend him on purpose.

The whole affair had ended up being more tiring than it was enlightening.

He had hoped that he would spot a familiar face at the kindergarten, but like all his previous attempts, this one fell short of its goal. Instead, he had to deal with people tiptoeing around him, witness the stiff postures and forced smiles of both the teachers and children, and through it all, he could see his son quietly cringing because no one would treat him the same way again.

Hence his dejected position on the bench, gazing forlornly at the playground.

There was no one about, for everyone was either at work or at school. The only people who would be about were homeless people, home-schooled children or perhaps disheartened beings like himself.

Akashi knew that it wasn't completely safe to be sitting in the open - especially with his high status - but he would take his chances. He needed somewhere to mope over his most recent loss, after all.

That was before something smacked into the back of his head.

He froze for a few moments, his mind whirring with conspiracy theories. It took a few more seconds before he started moving, mentally assessing the state of his body. After determining that yes, he could move, no, he was not struck by a sniper's bullet, he turned around slowly to search for the object that had hit him.

What he found instead was a young boy about his son's age, picking up a Frisbee from behind the bench. The boy shuffled over to the front of the bench after he had retrieved the toy - made of plastic, not some alloy that could have killed him - and bowed deeply.

"I am very sorry, Oji-san! We were just playing, and then the Frisbee flew too far..."

The boy's garbled apology fell on deaf ears as Akashi stared openly at him. He was so stunned that he couldn't berate the boy for calling him an 'uncle'. He wasn't _that_ old.

He didn't even bother to speculate whether the boy belonged to the 'homeless' or 'home-schooled' category. No, the sight before him was far too rare to put much thought into, for the moment.

 _Powder blue hair..._

Without thinking, Akashi's hand reached out and grasped the boy's shoulder lightly. His voice held a note of cautious optimism. "Tetsuya?"

"Oji-san?" The boy finally raised his head, and Akashi could see himself reflected in the clear blue pools. They were familiar, yet not. The shape of them was different from what he was used to, and the rest of the boy's features were slightly off as well.

 _Too innocent. His eyes are not round enough. His face holds too much emotion, and is too slim. His voice is different._

 _Not Tetsuya._

Akashi dropped his hand, looking away as disappointment flooded his chest. A small tendril of relief wrapped around his heart as well, that his beloved was not five times younger than him. "No, it's nothing. You reminded me of someone." The boy was still staring at him, so he tried for a smile. "If you're worried about hitting me, don't. I'm perfectly fine."

"I-it's not that, Oji-san..." The boy took two steps closer and peered into his face. "You look like someone I know, too."

Akashi was startled by that. "That's surprising. Not many people look like me."

The boy nodded vigorously. "I know! I thought Karma-kun was the only one with red hair... But his eyes are yellow, and yours are red." The blunette squinted at him as if he was confused, and Akashi couldn't help the chuckle that escaped.

"Well, kid, you look almost exactly like the person I know. They have blue hair and eyes too, same colour as yours."

The boy pouted, clearly put out. "Dang. I thought I was special."

Akashi laughed heartily at that. This kid was _cute_. He couldn't remember the last time someone dared to say something as casual as that to his face.

Was it possible that the boy was being so friendly because he did not know who he was? He almost didn't dare to hope for such an outcome.

"You sort of remind me of them too. Are you sure you don't have a twin?" Akashi jested.

"Nope!" The boy chirped, instantly reverting to his perky state. "Karma-kun likes to say one of me is bad enough. Can you imagine? Me? An awful person? He must be blind!"

Akashi found himself grinning at the blunette's antics and wondering who this Karma person was.

 _Lucky guy, to know someone as lively as him._

"Well, they do say that the quiet ones hold the most surprises." Akashi joked.

Suddenly, a flood of memories came upon him. Little things that his own blunette had dragged him into, surprising him pleasantly each time. Akashi could feel a whimsical smile tugging at his lips. Ah, how he missed Kuroko.

A light tapping on his knee made him turn his attention back to the boy. His expression had turned into one of curiosity, laced with concern. "Oji-san. Don't look so sad. I was just kidding around."

"I'm not sad." Akashi replied automatically.

The boy frowned. "Yes, you are. There's that little crease between your eyebrows. Everyone has it when they're sad."

Akashi unconsciously brought his hand up to his face, slightly surprised to see that the blunette was right.

When did he become so bad at concealing his emotions?

The boy was tapping on his knee again. "Oji-san. Who is it that you're missing?"

Perhaps it was the innocence of his tone, or perhaps the shade of his hair, but Akashi was overcome with a wave of nostalgia as he replied, "Someone important."

Then a thought occurred to him. "How did you know I'm missing someone?"

The boy shrugged, then hopped up to sit on the bench. He wriggled into a comfortable position, dropping the Frisbee onto his lap. "You looked kinda lost when you first thought I was him. And when you said his name, your eyes got all far-away like. How come you're missing him? Our communication systems are pretty good, or so my mama says."

Akashi didn't know what to feel more amused about: the fact that the boy picked up that the person he missed was male (although that fact was blaringly obvious from the name he unwittingly uttered), or that he knew a big word like 'communication'.

"I haven't seen him in a long time, and we lost contact years ago." It was said that kids of this generation could tell when they were being lied to, which was no matter, as what he said was pretty close to the truth.

He had lost contact with Kuroko, because they had been dead. And due to them being dead, they had obviously not met in a long time.

Reincarnation kind of sucked, if you thought about how it worked in the long-term. Not to mention, you could never be sure that your other half was reincarnated in the same cycle as you were.

The boy looked thoughtful. Akashi was struck again by how much he resembled Kuroko, if he wasn't looking carefully. "Well, Oji-san, I'm sure you'll find him eventually. Important people have a way of coming back to you in the end."

"Those are wise words." Akashi graced him with a tiny smile, though his heart still ached from the familiarity yet foreignness of the boy sitting next to him. "Who told you that?"

The boy beamed at him, confidence oozing from his eyes. "I found out myself. Because my Karma-kun always came back for me. Oh, I think he's calling." He cocked his head to one side, and sure enough, two seconds later a cry of "Nagisa-kun! Where are you?" was heard.

Nagisa grinned as he hopped off the bench, waving to Akashi as he ran towards the voice. "I gotta go. Bye, Oji-san! I hope you find him!"

The blunette headed towards the trees, and a taller redhead stepped out from behind a trunk, picking him up and spinning him around. Nagisa shrieked with glee, not noticing the redhead - Karma - shoot a suspicious look in Akashi's direction as he continued twirling his friend in the air. Akashi could understand his wariness. They looked quite similar from afar.

Nagisa's laughter reached him, the light sound evoking both happy and sad memories. The blunette wriggled free, only to run a short distance away.

He turned back and waved wildly at Akashi before diving into the forest. Karma spared the other redhead one last glare before he jumped in as well, hot on Nagisa's heels.

The fast-fading memory of the joyous tone in Nagisa's voice elicited a sad smile from Akashi, and he watched till their silhouettes were out of sight.

 _Sigh... Tetsuya, wherever you are, I hope we meet again soon. I have so many things to share with you._

 _I think I just found our twins. They seem to be soulmates as well. Nagisa reminds me of a more cheerful version of you, but Karma's attitude largely resembles a certain idiot blunette we know. Arrogant, condescending and self-absorbed. Do you think I have ever acted like that? No, I don't think I want to know your answer. It is likely 'Yes'._

 _This universe works in curious ways indeed. Maybe it's telling me that if the 'mini-us'es can find each other, we can too. It makes me wish that I would meet you in this lifetime. That is a pathetic thought, coming from me. I admit - you have always been my better half. Perhaps that is how some of your optimism rubbed off on me._

 _Universe, this would be a good time for telepathy to start working. Or perhaps not. Tetsuya would laugh at my wishful yearning. Love does strange things to one's countenance._

 _Nevertheless, in case telepathy_ does _work…_

 _May our paths cross soon, Tetsuya._

 _I'll be waiting._


End file.
